O’Fallon’s Justice Center Open House scheduled

The O’Fallon Justice Center when is was about 75 percent complete. [Nathan Rubbelke photo]

The public is invited to celebrate the grand opening of O’Fallon’s new Justice Center at the building’s grand opening celebration from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 2.

The event begins with a ribbon-cutting ceremony outside of the building at 11 a.m. After the ceremony, guests can tour the facility, which is the new home of the O’Fallon Police Department and Municipal Court. The open house concludes at 2 p.m.

Because much of the event will be outside, guests are reminded to dress for the weather.

O’Fallon’s new $26 million Justice Center features more than 96,000 square feet of space and includes state-of-the-art training tools and simulators, an indoor firing range, an underground garage and sally port, and ample space for expansion as the city grows over the next 30 years. The building was paid for by bonds supported by a voter-approved property tax increase.

“This building is truly a testament to how much our residents and businesses value public safety,” said Mayor Bill Hennessy. “As our Police Department outgrew its previous home in City Hall, we knew we had to ask our residents to fund the construction of a new facility through a tax increase. We are so grateful for their overwhelming support of this project, and I cannot wait for our residents to see this great new facility. The O’Fallon Police Department has proven year after year to be one of the best departments in the country. Now, they have a home that also is among the nation’s best.”

Ellen Lampe

Ellen joined the Newsmagazine Network in September 2017. In addition to her role as associate editor, Ellen covers the St. Louis County government beat for West Newsmagazine, and schools and bulletin board stories for Mid Rivers Newsmagazine. Prior to this role, she worked at television news stations KARK4 and FOX16 in Little Rock, Arkansas. She earned a BA in Journalism and a BA in Spanish from the University of Arkansas. A St. Louis native, Ellen is a graduate of Cor Jesu Academy high school. When she is not working, Ellen enjoys spending time with friends and family, cooking, reading, being outside and coaching lacrosse.